New York's East Village: ''Then And Now''

 ''Write what you know'' is a popular expression. In Daniel Root's case, he photographed what he knew.

The artist has lived in New York's East Village for decades, so it was easy for him to chronicle the changes here and on the Lower East Side, which is virtually next door.  

The results are in a new book called The-East-Village-Then-And-Now, and the cover features a photo of Madonna. She was ''then'' on St. Mark's Place, strolling in a scene from the movie Desperately Seeking Susan. 

Daniel examines numerous blocks--as they appeared in the eighties versus nowadays. Often the site is difficult to recognize, thanks to an abundance of new buildings and foliage. 

There's not much about the old art scene, but it is believed as many as 176 galleries were established here. Fun was one of the first to crop up in the eighties, and supported the likes of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, Fab 5 Freddy, Futura 2000, and Kenny Scharf.  

Also notable is 132 First Avenue. This is where the Rolling Stones' Waiting on a Friend video was filmed. Daniel points out that exterior shots in the video include a nearby building, seen on the cover of Led Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti album. 

Even today, visitors take photos of the Physical Graffiti setting and re-create clips from Waiting on a Friend.